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CALIFORNIA  RAILROAD  COMMISSION 


General  Program 


on 


Investigation  of  the  Grade  Crossing  Problem 

in  California  to  be  Undertaken 

by  the  Commission 


JANUARY,  1916 


Your  Active  Co-operation  is  Earnestly  Requested 


CALIFORNIA 

STATE  PRINTING  OFFICE 
1  9  .1  <.» 


If  ^6  *f 

!?rcroft  Library 


CALIFORNIA  RAILROAD  COMMISSION 


General  Program 


on 


Investigation  of  the  Grade  Crossing  Problem 

in  California  to  be  Undertaken 

by  the  Commission 


JANUARY,   1916 


Your  Active  Co-operation  is  Earnestly  Requested 


CALIFORNIA 

STATI:  I'KIXTIM;   Oi  i  K  \. 
1  \\  \  (\ 


GENERAL  PROGRAM. 


INVESTIGATION   OF  GRADE   CROSSING   CONDITIONS 

IN  CALIFORNIA. 

Grade  Crossing  Problem  in  California. 

During  the  year  ended  June  30,  1914,  the  railroads  reporting  to  the 
Interstate  Commerce  Commission  killed  and  injured  4,900  people  at 
grade  crossings;  and  the  number  of  deaths  and  injuries  is  yearly 
increasing  in  spite  of  the  efforts  being  made  to  decrease  these  figures. 
The  railroads  in  addition  to  spending  millions  of  dollars  to  separate 
grades  to  protect  crossings  have  been  making  a  determined  campaign  to 
educate  their  employees  and  the  public  to  the  dangers  of  crossings. 
Many  states,  especially  in  the  east,  have  appropriated  large  sums  of 
money  to  assist  local  bodies  and  the  railroads  in  separating  grades,  and 
one  of  them,  New  Jersey,  has  passed  a  law  prohibiting  the  construction 
of  new  grade  crossings  and  requiring  the  existing  grade  crossings  to  be 
gradually  eliminated.  Flagmen  and  gates  have  been  installed  by  thou- 
sands, and  the  old  type  of  crossing  bell  has  given  place  to  the  more 
effective  automatic  flagman ;  but  in  spite  of  all  these  things  the  number 
of  accidents  is  increasing. 

The  grade  crossing  conditions  in  California  are  worse  than  in  any 
other  state  in  the  Union.  In  1914,  California  with  less  than  4  per  cent 
of  the  population  of  the  country  and  less  than  2  per  cent  of  the  steam 
railway  mileage,  furnished  nearly  5  per  cent  of  the  deaths  and  injuries 
reported  to  the  Interstate  Commerce  Commission  as  resulting  from 
grade  crossing  accidents  on  steam  railroads. 

This  result  is  the  natural  outcome  of  conditions  which  have  brought 
about  the  increase  in  grade  crossing  accidents  in  recent  years.  Before 
the  coming  of  the  automobile,  traffic  on  the  highways  was  carried  on 
by  horse-drawn  vehicles  at  a  speed  which  rarely  exceeded  ten  miles  per 
hour  and  which  probably  averaged  less  than  five.  On  account  of 
the  limitations  of  the  horse,  drivers  were  generally  in  territory  which 
was  so  familiar  to  them  that  they  knew  where  each  crossing  was  located, 
its  condition  and  surroundings,  and  were  often  even  familiar  with  the 
timetables  of  the  railroads.  In  the  country,  because  many  horses  were 
unused  to  trains,  drivers  as  a  rule  desired  to  be  as  far  away  as  possible 
from  a  crossing  when  a  train  passed  over  it. 

This  has  all  been  changed.  The  coming  of  the  automobile  has  vastly 
increased  the  mileage  of  good  roads  and  the  two  together  have  made 
it  possible  for  much  traveling  to  be  done  in  territory  unfamiliar  to 

2—22166 


the  traveler,  while  the  speed  of  traffic  on  the  roads  has  been  greatly 
increased.  During  this  period  in  which  the  automobile  was  developing, 
there  has  developed  also  a  healthy  desire  on  the  part  of  those  who 
work  in  the  cities  to  live  in  the  suburbs,  and  this  has  led  to  the  construc- 
tion of  interurban  roads  and  the  use  of  high-speed  cars  upon  them,  as 
well  as  additional  high-speed  service  on  the  steam  railroads.  Popula- 
tion in  and  about  the  larger  cities  has  also  greatly  increased  during 
this  time,  and  the  traffic  on  both  rail  and  road  has  been  intensified  by 
this  growth. 

The  situation  in  California  is  peculiarly  unfavorable  to  satisfactory 
£rade  crossing  conditions.  The  State  ranks  third  in  the  number  of  its 
automobiles.  It  will  compare  favorably  with  any  state  in  the  mileage 
of  its  improved  roads.  It  has  a  large  automobile  tourist  traffic  unfa- 
miliar with  its  highways,  and  it  has  a  climate  which  permits  the  use  of 
automobiles  every  day  during  the  year.  Its  suburban  trains,  especially 
in  the  south,  are  numerous  and  run  at  high  speeds,  and  the  topography 
of  the  country  in  the  valleys  where  the  population  is  greatest,  train 
service  most  frequent  and  improved  highways  most  numerous,  rarely 
permits  of  grade  separations  being  made  without  the  expenditure  of 
large  sums  of  money.  In  these  valleys,  also,  fruit  orchards  are  plenti- 
ful and  grade  crossings  are  often  concealed  by  the  trees  at  the  inter- 
sections of  the  railroads  and  highways. 

The  following  table  shows  the  accidents  which  have  happened  at 
grade  crossings  in  California,  by  years,  from  June  30,  1912,  to  June  30, 
1915.  Statistics  for  previous  years  are  lacking: 


Tear  ending  June  30,  1913 

Year  ending  June  30,  1914 

Year  ending  June  30,  1915 

Electric 

Steam 

Total 

Electric 

Steam 

Total 

Electric 

Steam 

Total 

Killed 

38 
185 

45 

192 

83 

377 

46 

228 

47 
150 

93 

378 

39 

215 

34 
123 

73 
338 

Injured    

A  decrease  of  over  12  per  cent  in  the  total  number  of  those  injured 
during  1915  as  against  1914  would  indicate  that  crossings  are  safer 
now  than  they  were  a  year  ago;  and  the  work  of  the  Commission 
in  refusing  new  crossings  and  in  safeguarding  others  has  undoubtedly 
permanently  improved  conditions  to  a  certain  extent,  but  the  decrease 
in  the  number  of  accidents  must  be  attributed  more  to  the  safety  first 
campaigns  carried  on  by  the  railroads  than  to  any  other  factor. 

If  the  effect  of  a  safety  first  campaign  were  permanent  the  crossing 
problem  would  be  much  simplified.  It  is,  however,  not  permanent, 
but  is  of  exceedingly  short  duration  upon  the  public,  although  it  may 
be  more  or  less  permanent  among  employees  of  railroads  who  can 
secure  a  certain  amount  of  credit  for  safety  first  suggestions  and 


methods.  But  grade  crossing  accidents  are  rarely  the  result  of  care- 
lessness on  the  part  of  railroad  employees,  and  even  with  perpetual 
campaigns  among  the  public  they  will  in  time  cease  to  be  effective  to 
a  large  extent,  and  the  best  that  can  be  done,  in  addition  to  permanent 
"safety  first"  movements,  is  to  offset  in  various  ways  the  increase  in 
the  liability  of  accidents  caused  by  the  additional  crossings  which  must 
be  opened,  by  the  increase  in  the  mileage  of  railroads  and  good  roads, 
and  by  the  great  increase  in  the  number  of  automobiles,  as  the  price  of 
machines  is  continually  lowered  and  they  become  available  to  a  greater 
number  of  people. 

The  fact  that  during  the  six  months  ended  December  31,  1915,  265 
people  were  killed  and  injured  at  grade  crossings  in  the  State,  is  suffi- 
cient evidence  that  the  effectiveness  of  past  "safety  first"  campaigns  is 
dying  away.  This  is  at  the  rate  of  530  killed  and  injured  per  year 
as  against  411  for  the  previous  year,  or  an  increase  of  29  per  cent,  and 
is  sufficiently  and  strikingly  illustrative  of  the  importance  of  the 
problem  in  California,  and  shows  the  need  of  urgent  action  on  the 
part  of  those  who  are  in  a  position  to  aid  in  stopping  this  increase  in 
waste  of  human  life. 

There  are  in  California  probably  10,000  grade  crossings.  Steam 
railroads  reporting  to  the  Interstate  Commerce  Commission  have  alone 
listed  7,500  crossings  in  the  State.  But  few  of  these  crossings  are 
protected.  Around  many  of  them  trees,  brush,  buildings  and  bill- 
boards so  obscure  the  approaches  that  they  are  a  constant  menace  to 
the  safety  of  every  user  of  the  highway.  Others  are  so  close  to  adjacent 
crossings  that  they  invite  road  traffic  needlessly  to  cross  and  recross 
the  tracks  when  other  routes  are  available  which  are  free  from  crossings. 
Still  others  are  so  located  that  they  serve  no  public  convenience  what- 
ever, and  it  is  often  these  neglected  and  little  used  crossings  that  are 
responsible  for  the  most  serious  accidents. 

What  Can  Be  Done? 

To  separate  grades  at  all  the  crossings  in  California  on  the  basis  of 
the  very  low  figure  of  $30,000  per  crossing,  would  cost  some 
$300,000,000.  Interest  on  this  sum  at  6  per  cent  would  amount  to 
$18,000,000  per  annum,  or  an  annual  per  capita  tax  on  the  people  of 
the  State  of  $6.00.  Plainly  any  movement  to  separate  all  grade  cross- 
ings in  the  State  is  entirely  out  of  the  question.  There  remains,  then, 
only  the  possibility  of  improving  the  conditions  surrounding  grade 
crossings,  making  separations  in  extreme  cases  only  and  as  a  last  resort. 

There  are  many  ways  in  which  grade  crossings  can  be  improved. 
During  the  year  ended  June  30,  1915,  55  per  cent  of  the  deaths  and 


—  6  — 

injuries  received  at  grade  crossings  were  chargeable  to  automobiles. 
While  the  purpose  is  to  protect  traffic  in  general,  it  is  manifest  from 
these  figures  that  automobile  traffic  is  of  such  a  character  that  when 
adequate  protection  is  afforded  for  this  class  of  traffic,  all  other  traffic 
will  be  amply  protected  also.  The  first  thing  to  be  done  in  improving 
the  grade  crossing  situation  is  to  see  to  it  that  the  cautious  and  careful 
driver  is  given  every  chance  to  safeguard  his  passage  over  a  crossing,  and 
this  can  be  done  by  any  type  of  a  sign  which  will  warn  him  sufficiently  in 
advance  that  he  is  approaching  a  crossing.  Unfortunately  careful 
drivers  are  comparatively  few  in  numbers.  The  reckless  drivers  make 
the  largest  contribution  to  the  accident  statistics  and  they  can  be  pro- 
tected only  by  making  crossings  ' '  fool-proof ' '  —by  making  it  physically 
impossible  for  an  automobile  and  a  train  to  come  together — and  as  this 
means  grade  separations,  it  is,  of  course,  out  of  the  question  on  a  large 
scale.  The  average  driver  who  forms  the  largest  class  is  not  a  careful 
driver,  nor,  on  the  other  hand,  is  he  wantonly  reckless;  but  statistics 
show  that  he  fails  to  exercise  care  in  safeguarding  his  passage  over 
railroad  crossings,  and  it  is  principally  for  him  that  grade  crossings 
should  be  improved  and  protected. 

One  of  the  first  things  to  be  done  is  to  remove  obstructions  to  the 
view  where  they  exist  and  can  be  removed.  When  they  can  not  be 
removed  and  when  traffic  warrants,  ample  warning  signals  can  be 
installed  in  such  a  conspicuous  place  that  it  will  be  impossible  for  them 
to  be  overlooked.  At  unusually  dangerous  crossings  approach  warn- 
ing signs  can  be  placed.  In  cities  the  installation  of  human  flagmen 
or  gates  can  protect  all  except  those  who  take  no  pains  to  protect  them- 
selves. Grades  of  approach  can  be  flattened  where  they  are  now  too 
steep  to  enable  drivers  to  keep  control  of  their  machines,  and  the 
physical  conditions  of  crossings  can  be  improved  so  that  drivers  can 
devote  all  their  attention  to  watching  for  approaching  trains  without 
being  diverted  in  an  attempt  to  choose  a  smooth  road  over  the  tracks. 
But  the  best  step  that  can  be  taken  in  improving  the  grade  crossing 
situation  is  in  closing  crossings  which  are  not  absolutely  needed. 
Grade  crossings  will  eventually  be  abolished,  and  every  grade  crossing 
in  existence,  when  that  time  comes,  will  mean  an  expenditure  of  from 
$30,000  to  five  times  that  sum  or  more,  and  regardless  of  who  furnishes 
the  money  in  the  first  instance,  the  cost  will  finally  rest  on  the  people 
of  the  State. 

At  the  present  time  many  crossings  could  be  closed  without  present 
or  future  inconvenience  to  the  public,  while  twenty  years  from  now, 
or  even  in  much  less  time,  it  will  be  impossible  to  do  away  with  them. 


What  the  Commission  Proposes  to  Do. 

Sections  42,  43  and  44  of  the  Public  Utilities  Act,  taken  together, 
make  the  Railroad  Commission  more  or  less  responsible  for  the  safety 
of  grade  crossings,  and  under  the  authority  conferred  upon  it  in  those 
sections  it  proposes  to  take  active  steps  to  improve  conditions  at  cross- 
ings throughout  the  State.  It  proposes  to  make  a  thorough  investiga- 
tion of  the  situation,  which  will  include  a  survey  of  each  crossing  and 
of  the  traffic  that  uses  it,  and  from  the  data  secured  it  proposes  to  have 
the  crossings  safeguarded  in  all  of  the  various  ways  in  which  it  can  be 
done.  This  is  a  large  and  important  undertaking,  and  it  is  apparent 
that  the  Commission  can  accomplish  little  without  the  help  and 
co-operation  of  the  officials  of  the  towns,  cities  and  counties,  as  well  as 
of  the  carriers,  and  that  it  will  need  all  the  assistance  it  can  secure 
from  other  sources.  To  arouse  interest  in  this  work  it  proposes  to 
hold  five  general  hearings  throughout  the  State  to  discuss  the  matter 
with  the  officials  of  the  political  bodies,  the  carriers  and  others  inter- 
ested in  the  subject,  and  it  believes  that  such  a  free  discussion  will 
not  only  be  of  great  value  to  it  in  securing  the  suggestions  of  others 
but  will  be  of  great  benefit  as  a  "safety  first"  meeting,  which  will 
bring  home  to  the  public  the  great  dangers  of  grade  crossings  and  the 
importance  of  the  grade  crossing  problem. 

It  has  been  tentatively  decided  that  the  entire  Commission  will  hold 
these  hearings  in  Sacramento,  Los  Angeles,  San  Diego,  Fresno  and  San 
Francisco  during  the  month  of  February.  Special  invitations  will  be 
sent  to  the  officials  of  political  bodies  and  carriers  and  notices  of  these 
hearings  will  be  given  in  the  press.  It  is  the  Commission's  hope  that  a 
large  number  of  citizens  will  attend  these  hearings  and  offer  such 
suggestions  as  they  may  wish  to  make. 

The  program  to  be  adopted  following  the  general  hearings  will 
depend  largely  on  what  is  there  developed  and  the  willingness  of  the 
public  officials  and  the  officials  of  the  carriers  to  help  the  Commission 
in  this  matter.  Tentatively,  it  is  decided  that  following  this  general 
hearing  the  State  will  be  divided  into  districts,  and  further  hearings 
will  be  held  in  each  of  these  districts  to  which  will  be  invited  represen- 
tatives of  the  carriers,  the  towns,  cities,  and  counties,  representatives 
of  automobile  clubs,  county  highway  commissions,  the  State  Highway 
Commission,  improvement  and  commercial  clubs  and  others  who  may 
be  interested. 


8  — 


The  following  list  shows  the  territory  included  in  the  districts  con- 
sidered and  the  location  of  the  place  of  hearing : 

List  of  Grade  Crossing   Investigation   Districts. 


No. 

1 

2 
3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 


Counties  included 


Del  Norte,  Humboldt,  Trinity 

Siskiyou,  Shasta,  Tehama 

Modoc,    Lassen,    Plumas,    Sierra,   Nevada,    Placer,   El 

Dorado,  Yolo,  Sacramento,  Amador 

Glenn,  Butte,  Colusa,  Sutter,  Yuba 

Mendocino,  Sonoma,  Marin 

Napa,  Solano 

City  and  County  of  San  Francisco,  San  Mateo 

Alameda 

Contra  Costa  

San  Joaquin,  Calaveras 

Santa  Clara,  Santa  Cruz,  San  Benito,  Monterey 

Stanislaus,  Tuolumne,  Mariposa,  Merced 

Madera,  Fresno  

Kings,  Tulare  

San  Luis  Obispo 

Kern  

Santa  Barbara,  Ventura 

Los  Angeles  

San  Bernardino,  Riverside 

Orange  

San  Diego 

Imperial 


Place  of  hearing 


Eureka. 
Redding. 

Sacramento. 

Colusa. 

Santa  Rosa. 

Napa. 

San  Francisco. 

Oakland. 

Martinez. 

Stockton. 

San  Jose. 

Merced. 

Fresno. 

Visalia. 

San  Luis  Obispo. 

Bakersfield. 

Santa  Barbara. 

Los  Angeles. 

San  Bernardino. 

Santa  Ana. 

San  Diego. 

El  Centro. 


NOTE. — Lake  County  and  Alpine  County  are  not  included  in  this  list,  there  being  no 
railroads  in  either  of  these  counties. 

At  these  hearings  the  co-operation  of  the  carriers  and  the  public 
officials  will  be  asked  for  and  their  support  and  assistance  solicited  in 
forwarding  and  helping  the  Commission's  engineering  department  on 
the  surveys  to  be  undertaken,  and  in  securing  information  as  to  cross- 
ings considered  dangerous  or  public  highways  it  may  be  possible  to  have 
closed.  Ways  and  means  of  procuring  this  information  will  be  dis- 
cussed, and  the  possibility  of  securing  it  jointly  by  the  representatives 
of  the  carriers,  public  officials  and  the  Commission,  will  be  considered. 
These  hearings  will  be  somewhat  similar  to  the  general  hearings,  but 
will  go  more  into  details  and  deal  with  specific  matters  rather  than 
with  a  general  program. 

There  is  hardly  a  doubt  but  that  surveys  should  be  made  of  all 
crossings.  It  has  been  found  to  be  the  first  prerequisite  of  a  considera- 
tion of  grade  crossing  matters  in  the  states  which  have  commissions 
with  jurisdictions  over  crossings,  and  it  is  only  reasonable  that  such 
findings  as  the  Commission  may  make  on  the  problem  in  this  State 
should  be  based  on  sufficient  data  to  enable  it  to  view  the  situation  as 
a  whole.  When  the  surveys  are  completed  for  any  district  reports  will 
be  made  which  will  cover  crossing  conditions  on  one  railroad  in  one 
political  subdivision  only.  That  is,  each  railroad  within  the  limits  of 


9  

an  incorporated  town  or  city,  or  the  unincorporated  territory  in  a 
county,  will  be  considered  as  a  unit  for  the  purposes  of  these  reports. 
If  it  is  found  impossible  to  make  joint  reports  on  the  part  of  all  con- 
cerned, the  reports  made  by  our  engineering  department  will  be  sent 
to  the  interested  parties.  In  addition  to  the  information  developed 
by  the  survey  they  will  contain  the  definite  recommendation  of  our 
engineers  for  crossing  improvements  and  for  crossings  which  they  con- 
sider should  be  closed ;  and  the  officials  of  the  carriers  and  the  political 
corporations  will  have  ample  opportunity  to  look  them  over  and  make 
such  criticisms  and  suggestions  as  occur  to  them.  If  they  approve  the 
recommendations  contained  therein,  the  Commission  hopes  that  they 
will  be  adopted  and  carried  out.  If  there  are  objections  made  to  these 
recommendations  by  either  the  carriers  or  the  political  bodies,  a  formal 
hearing  can  be  held,  if  necessary,  and  the  Commission  will  consider 
the  points  at  issue  and  make  "such  orders  as  appear  to  be  right  and 
just  in  the  premises. 

This,  in  brief,  is  the  program  the  Commission  has  tentatively  adopted, 
and  that  if  carried  out  it  will  result  in  greatly  increased  safety  and  a 
large  lessening  of  the  loss  of  life  in  grade  crossing  accidents  can  not 
be  doubted. 

It  is  equally  beyond  doubt  that  what  the  Commission  can  do  alone 
in  the  matter  will  be  small  compared  with  what  it  can  do  if  the  repre- 
sentatives of  the  public  and  the  carriers  co-operate  with  it  and  assist 
it  either  in  carrying  out  this  program  or  any  other  that  may  be  sub- 
stituted for  it  after  the  general  hearings  have  been  held. 

What  Others  Can  Do  to  Help  in  This  Work. 

The  responsibility  for  the  existence  of  grade  crossings  is  mutual  as 
between  the  public  and  the  railroads.  The  responsibility  for  the  acci- 
dents which  occur  upon  them  is  mutual,  and  the  improvement  of 
existing  conditions  should  be  a  mutual  work.  As  the  grade  crossings 
exist  today,  each  crossing  means  to  the  railroad  potential  damage 
suits,  unsatisfactory  safety  conditions  and  a  long  list  of  killed  and 
injured;  to  the  railroad  officials  it  means  a  source  of  constant  worry; 
to  the  towns,  cities  and  counties  it  is  a  menace  to  the  lives  of  their 
citizens ;  and  to  every  individual  it  is  a  serious  danger. 

The  crossing  situation  in  this  State  can  be  vastly  improved  at  a 
comparatively  small  expenditure  of  money  and  effort,  and  the  public 
and  the  carriers  should  bear  their  fair  share  of  each.  The  railroads 
can  assist  in  this  work  by  showing  a  willingness  to  promote  it  in  its 
early  stages  by  helping  the  Commission's  engineers  in  the  surveys  pro- 
posed and  by  extending  the  attitude  they  have  manifested  toward  new 
crossings  to  the  work  of  protecting  those  that  are  now  in  existence. 


—  10  — 

The  officials  of  the  towns,  cities  and  counties,  by  attending  the  hearings, 
taking  part  in  the  discussions  and  assisting  in  the  surveys  by  calling 
attention  to  dangerous  crossings  or  those  that  can  possibly  be  closed, 
can  assist  in  this  work  from  the  start.  Later,  by  willingness  to  bear 
part  of  the  cost  of  such  improvements  as  are  decided  upon,  by  a  will- 
ingness to  assist  in  closing  roads  which  do  not  serve  an  actual  public 
convenience,  they  can  be  of  much  more  assistance.  As  a  matter  of 
i'act,  the  towns,  cities  and  counties  are  prepared  to  do  much  of  the 
work,  which  it  will  be  necessary  to  do,  cheaper  and  better  than  can  the 
railroad  companies.  This  is  especially  true  where  such  work  involves 
negotiations  with  property  owners.  As  an  instance  of  this,  the  county 
can  far  better  take  steps  to  remove  brush  and  trees  on  private  property, 
at  an  intersection  of  a  highway  and  railroad,  than  can  the  railroad 
company,  and  the  same  is  true  of  the  city  officials  in  removing  in  cities 
such  obstructions  as  billboards  and  fences,  and  in  seeing  to  it  that  atten- 
tion is  paid  to  the  grade  crossing  question  in  the  laying  out  of  new 
subdivisions  and  real  estate  tracts. 

Revision  of  crossing  grades  of  approach  outside  of  railroad  rights 
of  way  is  also  a  matter  in  which  the  public  officials  can  justly  assume 
the  expense,  and  many  other  similar  examples  might  be  mentioned. 


CONCLUSION. 

In  spite  of  any  action  that  may  be  taken  to  make  grade  crossings 
safer,  there  will  still  be  many  grade  crossing  accidents  caused  by  care- 
lessness, for  the  present  means  of  protecting  grade  crossings  are  entirely 
inadequate  to  protect  those  who  will  not  protect  themselves.  That 
automatic  flagmen,  crossing  gates  and  human  flagmen  have  apparently 
but  little  effect  upon  the  reckless  driver  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  30 
per  cent  of  the  total  killed  and  15  per  cent  of  those  injured  at  grade 
crossings  in  this  State  this  year  were  hit  by  trains  at  crossings  where 
gates  were  down,  crossing  bells  were  ringing,  automatic  flagmen  were 
in  action,  or  human  flagmen  were  at  their  stations.  Sixteen  people 
were  injured  during  this  period  by  vehicles  which  ran  into  trains  on 
crossings.  Many  of  these  trains  were  standing  still  when  the  accident 
occurred. 

The  Southern  Pacific  Company  in  a  recent  examination  of  thirty-four 
crossings  in  all  parts  of  the  State  observed  the  attitude  of  over  17,000 
motor  drivers  in  crossing  the  tracks.  But  27.8  per  cent  looked  in 
both  ways  for  approaching  trains ;  2.7  per  cent  looked  in  one  direction 
only;  and  69.5  per  cent  looked  in  neither  direction;  3,300  crossed  the 
track  at  a  reckless  speed,  and  but  thirty-five  out  of  the  more  than  17,000 
drivers  stopped  their  vehicles  to  look  along  the  track  before  crossing  it. 


The  same  company  has  reported  that  during  the  two  years  ended 
June  30,  1915,  525  crossing  gates  were  broken  down  by  vehicle  drivers. 
Since  these  gates  are  down  only  when  a  train  is  approaching,  in  other 
words  when  it  is  dangerous  to  be  on  the  track,  this  fact  is  a  speaking 
commentary  on  one  phase  of  the  subject  that  should  be  considered,  that 
is,  the  education  of  the  reckless  driver. 

The  railroads  of  the  State  deserve  a  great  deal  of  credit  for  the 
"safety  first"  campaigns  they  have  carried  on  in  the  past  and  are 
now  carrying  on.  It  is  the  belief  of  the  Commission  that  the  movement 
it  is  now  undertaking  will  be  effective  along  these  same  lines,  and  it 
will  endeavor  to  give  wide  publicity  to  that  movement  to  the  end  that 
it  may  bring  home  to  the  careless  automobile  driver  and  impress  upon 
his  mind  some  of  the  facts  that  have  just  been  cited.  If  he  can  not 
be  protected  by  grade  separations  he  can  at  least  be  repeatedly  warned 
of  the  dangers  he  incurs. 

Grade  separations,  as  has  been  said  before,  are  the  eventual  solution 
of  the  crossing  problem,  but  that  solution  is  many  years  in  the  future. 
Until  that  time  comes  the  public  and  the  carriers  must  unite  to  miti- 
gate the  dangers  of  the  grade  crossing.  They  should  both  be  prepared 
to  expend  money  to  close  or  protect  them.  Public  officials  must  ask 
for  no  more  crossings  than  are  absolutely  necessary,  and  must  examine 
the  roads  and  streets  through  new  subdivisions  which  they  are  asked 
to  accept  as  public  streets  and  highways,  and  refuse  to  accept  them 
if  they  include  needless  railroad  crossings.  "Safety  First"  campaigns 
must  be  continually  carried  on,  and  nothing  must  be  omitted  which 
will  tend  to  decrease  the  number  of  accidents. 

The  Commission  expects  to  take  an  active  part  in  this  important 
work,  and  it  hopes  the  investigation  it  is  about  to  undertake  will  have 
the  effect  of  (1)  making  all  crossings  safe  for  the  careful  driver;  (2)  of 
educating  the  careless  driver  to  the  dangers  he  incurs  at  crossings; 
and  (3)  of  affording  all  possible  safeguards  at  crossings  for  the  large 
majority  of  drivers  who  are  neither  careful  nor  reckless. 

CALIFORNIA  RAILROAD   COMMISSION, 
MAX  THELEN,  President. 
H.  D.  LOVELAND,  Commissioner. 
ALEX  GORDON,  Commissioner. 
EDWIN  0.  EDGERTON,  Commissioner. 
FRANK  R.  DEVLIN,  Commissioner. 
San  Francisco,  January  15,  1916. 


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